Weatherstrip

ABSTRACT

A WEAHTERSTRIP FOR SEALING JOINTS BETWEEN SPACED MEMBERS, AS BETWEEN A DOOR OR AND ITS JAMB, HAS A BASE OF INDEFINITE LENGTH FROM WHICH PROJECT FILAMENT MEMBERS FORMING PILE ALONG THE LENGTH OF THE BASE. A FLEXIBLE BARRIER MEMBER WITHIN THE PILE EXTENDS ALONG THE LENGTH OF THE   PILE TO AID IN SEALING THE JOINT BARRIER IS SECURED ONLY TO THE PILE.

July 10, 1973 W. JOHNSON ET AL 3,745,.Q53

WEATHERSTR I I" Filed May 26, 1972 United States Patent Office" Patented July 10, I973 3,745,053 WEATHERSTRIP Leonard W. Johnson, Ameshury, and Albert E. Newton,

Beverly, Mass, assignors to USM Corporation, Flemington, NJ.

Filed May 26, 1972, Ser. No. 257,431 Int. Cl. D04h 11/00; E061) 7/22 US. Cl. 161-63 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Modern techniques for the construction of enclosed spaces such as homes and automobiles commonly rely on Weatherstripping to provide sealed joints in the construction materials. Particularly where the joint is at an access port such as a door or window, the problems of providing an effective seal against the incursion of outside elements is compounded by the necessity for opening and closing the port. A variety of weatherstrips are known for this purpose.

One variety of such weatherstrips has closely spaced filaments projecting from a backing to form a pile along the backing. A length of such Weatherstrip appropriate to the joint to be sealed is mounted on one side of the joint to be crushingly engaged by the member forming the other side of the joint, thereby compressing the pile into a sealing mass of filaments. Unfortunately, the individual filaments leave random gaps which, in certain applications, permit undesirably excessive infiltration of Wind, rain and other elements between the joint.

An improved form of pile Weatherstripping is described in US. Letters Patent No. 3,175,256, issued Mar. 30, 1965 in the name of Robert C. Horton. In this patent is described a Weatherstrip having spaced bodies of pile fibers extending longitudinally along a base strip with a pile-free gap between the pile bodies. A barrier strip of impervious, flexible sheet material is fixed at one edge to the base strip in the pile-free gap to project laterally from the base strip and extend longitudinally along the strip. Both the fibers of the pile bodies and the barrier strip are secured to the base and cooperate in mutual support of each other. In use, the flexible barrier strip along with the pile bodies is crushingly engaged between adjacent members of a joint to aid the pile bodies in sealing the joint.

Although the above patent describes several embodiments, the commercially acceptable embodiment involves a method of manufacturing such Weatherstrip by heat sealing a folded barrier strip at the fold to the base of the Weatherstrip. In order to maintain the flexibility of the barrier strip, the commercially used barrier strip is a thin thermoplastic sheet on the order of 0.003 inch thick. Commercial sizes of such wheatherstripping are also commonly on the order of 0.25 inch wide across the base of the strip with a 0.06 inch pile-free gap between pile bodies. The narrow gap is necessitated by the relatively small Weatherstrip width and for the mutual support between the barrier and the pile. When the barrier strip is folded to fit in the narrow gap, a correspondingly narrow edge of the folded material is presented to the base strip for attachment along a single line of the fold. The thin material on such a narrow edge affords little thermoplastic material for heat sealing the strip to the base. Accordingly, careful attention must be paid during manufacturing of such Weatherstripping to assure proper attachment of the barrier at its single line of attachment. Shearing forces on the barrier from crushing engagement of the Weatherstrip in a joint place a premium on the strength of attachment of the barrier to the base.

Additionally, the small dimensions of the gap require correspondingly small dimension tools for heating the thermoplastic barrier into heat sealed engagement with the base. Such small dimension tools are difiicult to use to mass produce the many linear feet of such Weatherstrip as are commercially salable.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a Weatherstrip having a pile body projecting from a base and an impervious barrier strip extending longitudinally of the base in the pile body in which the barrier may be secured to the Weatherstrip at more than one place. It is a further object to provide such a Weatherstrip having an increased resilience in the barrier relative to the base by se curing the barrier only to the flexible, filaments comprising the pile.

To this end, a Weatherstrip for sealing joints between spaced members has a base of indefinite length from which flexible filaments project to form a pile body along the length of the strip. A flexible barrier is disposed within the pile to extend adjacent to and along the length of the base to aid in sealing the joint. The barrier is secured only to and supported only by the pile.

DESCRIPTION OF THE D'RAVVINGS The invention will now be described with reference to a preferred embodiment which is intended to be illustrative of and not a limitation on the invention, drawings of which are:

FIG. I is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the invention with the barrier strip opened by shearing forces;

FIG. 3 is an end view of the preferred embodiment of the type shown in FIG. 1 in operative engagement between members of a joint;

FIG. 4 is an end view of an alternative embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 5 is an end view of another alternative embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 6 is an end view of still another alternative embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 7 is an end view of still another alternative embodiment of the invention; and FIG. 8 is still another alternative embodiment of the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT FIG. 1 shows a preferred embodiment of the invention to have a base 10 from which project a plurality of flexible filaments 12 forming pile 14 along the length of the base. The base may be of any length suitable to be fitted along a joint between spaced members. A flexible barrier 16 has a longitudinal fold 17 and is inserted within the pile with the fold adjacent the base 10. Beads of adhesive 18 extend along sides of the barrier intermediate opposite edges of the barrier to adhesively secure the barrier only to the pile. The barrier is thus resiliently supported along the base by the flexible filament members forming the pile, but the barrier does not support the pile. The barrier serves to increase the impermeability of the Weatherstrip to wind, rain or other elements which might otherwise penetrate the Weatherstrip. To facilitate mounting the Weatherstrip in a joint, pile-free shoulders 20 are provided along opposite, longitudinal sides of the base for insertion into channel members (not shown) extending along one of the members forming a side of the joint.

FIG. 2 illustrates one of the advantages of the resilient mounting of the barrier by securing the barrier only to the pile. When a shearing force or force parallel to the base as indicated by arrow 22 separates the pile on either side of the barrier, as would result from opening a hinged door in sealing engagement with the Weatherstrip, the barrier flexes with the flexible filaments forming the pile and the fold 17 rises substantially above the base to relieve the resulting stress in the barrier. If the barrier were to be secured to the base, such a shear force may separate the barrier from the base, thus destroying the con nection between the base and the barrier. The barrier could then be dislodged from the Weatherstrip which then would lose at least part of its impervious character.

If there is significant shearing force applied to the barrier relative to the pile, the attachment of the barrier to the pile permits a greater area of attachment for more firmly securing the barrier to the Weatherstrip than a single line of attachment between the barrier and base. In the preferred embodiment shown in FIGS. l-3 two beads of adhesive 18 on opposite sides of the barrier are employed. The attachment of the barrier is thus at least twice as strong as attachment along a single line. As later described in relation to an alternative embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the area of attachment may be further increased to the entire side of the barrier adjacent the pile. Similarly, proper selection of adhesive and barrier and pile materials permits a stronger adhesion of the barrier to the pile than the presently commercial heat sealing; however, such heat sealing of the barrier to the pile is intended to be within the scope of the invention. For example, a thermoactivatable adhesive and a high temperature stable or relatively non-thermoactivatable barrier sheet material and polypropylene pile filaments provide such strong attachment.

Attachment of the barrier to the pile is still further advantageous because the attaching medium, preferably adhesive, may penetrate into the pile, surrounding some pile filaments and adhering to some filaments spaced one or more filaments away from the barrier into the pile. In contrast to this relative permeability of the pile, the base is relatively impervious to the attaching medium and is preferably so impervious to prevent leakage of elements through the base of the Weatherstrip, thereby reducing its joint sealing capabilities.

When the Weatherstrip is compressively engaged between members 24 forming sides of a joint to be sealed by the Weatherstrip, as seen in FIG. 3, the advantageous, adhesive attachment of the barrier only to the flexible filaments forming the pile resiliently supports the barrier for sealing engagement with the member opposite the base 10. The fold 17 sealingly engages the base with a bulbous deformation while the pile attached to the barrier constrains the portions of the barrier adjacent the fold from unnecessary spreading. When the compressive force of the members 24 is relieved, the flexible filaments resiliently urge the barrier to its initial position shown in FIG. 1. Portions of the barrier between the fold'and the adhesive attachment are discouraged from becoming permanently deformed by the compressive force preventing improper sealing of the barrier upon re-engagement by the members 24.

During the compressive engagement of the Weatherstrip, by the members 24 shown in FIG. 3, the beads of adhesive provide a vertical structural stiffening to the barrier which aids in maintaining the barrier in its appropriate orientation between the members 24. Buckling and creasing of the barrier between its fold and opposite edge are thus discouraged. Similarly, the beads provide longitudinal structural stiffening to the barrier to prevent wavering of the barrier along the length of the weatherstrip. Of course, appropriate degrees of structural stiffening may be obtained by design selection of the particular adhesive or other attaching medium, and by the support of the barrier by the pile.

Finally, the attachment of the barrier to the pile, par ticularly with an adhesive bead intermediate vertically spaced edges of the barrier, promotes ease of manufacture by not requiring a tool to reach the base to attach the barrier to the base. Similarly, the tool need not be small enough to fit into a fold in the barrier without interfering with the fold.

FIGS. 4 through 8 illustrate alternative embodiments of the invention. In FIG. 4 the barrier is a single strip without the fold of the preferred embodiment. Again, the barrier is adhesively secured only to the filaments forming the pile. In FIG. 5 a second alternative embodiment has no pile-free gap in the pile in which the barrier is inserted. Instead, the filaments forming the pile are simply parted and a barrier inserted and adhesively secured only to the parted pile. The alternative embodiment in FIG. 6 differs in two significant respects from the preferred embodiment. Firstly, the barrier is secured to the pile by only one bead of adhesive 18, and secondly the barrier does not extend to the base 10 but has a fold 17 spaced from the base. The spacing of the fold provides further room for compressively deforming the weatherstrip before the barrier 16, resiliently supported by the pile 14, may engage the base. If desired for further enhancing the sealing capabilities of the Weatherstrip, the space between the barrier and base may be sealingly filled with a non-adhesive gasket material 19 such as grease, wax or silicone grease, which is retained by the barrier, pile and base but permits movement of the barrier, including the fold 17, relative to the base. FIG. 7 illustrates an alternative embodiment in which a fold 17 in the barrier 16 is an edge of the barrier away from the base 10. The barrier continues to be resiliently supported by adhesive attachment only to the pile. Yet another alternative embodiment is illustrated by FIG. 8; in this embodiment the barrier 16 is coated with a uniform layer 26 of adhesive instead of the bead of adhesive in the preferred embodiment. The barrier is not secured to the base by spacing the barrier 16 from the base 10, or, alternatively, the barrier may not be secured to the base even if it extends to the base, by not activating the adhesive between the barrier and the base. Thus, the adhesive attaches the barrier only to the pile.

Still other alternative embodiments of the invention are contemplated to be within its scope which is defined by the following claims.

We claim:

1. A Weatherstrip for sealing joints comprising: a base; a plurality of flexible filaments projecting from the base to form pile; an impervious barrier within the pile having an edge extending along the base; and means attaching the barrier only to the pile.

2. A Weatherstrip as in claim 1 wherein the barrier is a folded sheet of flexible material having the fold adjacent the base.

3. A Weatherstrip as in claim 1 wherein the means attaching the barrier to the pile is a bead of adhesive intermediate opposite edges of the barrier.

4. A Weatherstrip as in claim 1 wherein the means attaching the barrier to the pile is a uniform coating of adhesive on the barrier.

5. A Weatherstrip as in claim 1 wherein the means attaching the barrier to the pile is a thermoactivatable adhesive and the barrier is a non-thermoactivatable material.

6. A Weatherstrip as in claim 1 wherein one edge of the barrier is spaced from the base and additionally comprising a non-adhesive gasket material sealingly filling the space between the barrier, base and pile.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,175,256 3/1965 Horton 49-489 3,404,487 10/ 1968 Johnson 49-475 3,175,257 3/1965 Kessler l6167 DAVID J. WILLIAMOWSKY, Primary Examiner P. C. KANNAN, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

